Can You Forgive Her?

Trollope inextricably binds together the issues of parliamentary election and marriage, of politics and privacy. The values and aspirations of the governing stratum of Victorian society are ruthlessly examined and none remains unscathed. But it is above all on the predicament of women that Trollope focuses. ‘What should a woman do with her life?’ asks Alice Vavasor of herself, and this theme is echoed by every other woman in the novel.

The Warden

Anthony Trollope's classic novel centers on Mr. Harding, a clergyman of great personal integrity whose charitable income far exceeds the purpose for which it was intended. On discovering this, young John Bold turns his reforming zeal toward exposing what he regards as an abuse of privilege, despite the fact that he is in love with Mr. Harding's daughter, Eleanor.

The Way We Live Now

In this world of bribes, vendettas and swindling, in which heiresses are gambled and won, Trollope's characters embody all the vices: Lady Carbury is 'false from head to foot'; her son Felix has 'the instincts of a horse, not approaching the higher sympathies of a dog'; and Melmotte - the colossal figure who dominates the book - is a 'horrid, big, rich scoundrel... a bloated swindler... a vile city ruffian'.

The Prime Minister

Unscrupulous financial speculator Ferdinand Lopez, aspiring to marry into respectability and wealth, has society at his feet, with well-connected ladies vying with each other to exert influence on his behalf. Even Lady Glencora, the wife of Plantagenet Palliser, prime minister of England, supports the exotic imposter. Palliser, respectable man of power and inherited wealth, is appalled by the rise of this man who seemingly appeared out of nowhere.

Mary Barton: A Tale of Manchester Life

When her father assassinates Henry Carson, his employer's son and Mary's admirer, suspicion falls on Mary's second admirer, Jem, a fellow worker. Mary has to prove her lover's innocence without incriminating her own father.

Vanity Fair [AudioGo]

Set during the time of the Napoleonic Wars, this classic gives a satirical picture of a worldly society. The novel revolves around the exploits of the impoverished but beautiful and devious Becky Sharp.

The Mill on the Floss

Maggie Tulliver has two lovers: Philip Wakem, son of her father’s enemy, and Stephen Guest, already promised to her cousin. But the love she wants most in the world is that of her brother Tom. Maggie’s struggle against her passionate and sensual nature leads her to a deeper understanding and to eventual tragedy

Dr Wortles School

Dr. Wortle's School... is Trollope's most merciless attack on the false moralising and hypocrisy of the Victorian age. When Dr. Wortle, in good faith, hires a couple as teacher and matron at his school, scandal about their marriage is subsequently brought to light. Will the doctor submit to the social pressures brought to bear on him by the gossip, the local newspaper and the bishop or hold true to his humanism, perhaps losing his respect, school and livelihood as a result?

Sir Harry Hotspur

A man of conscience, duty and tradition, an immature, impressionable girl of supreme virtue and perhaps the greatest cad in English Literature are the chief protagonists of this tale. Tragedy falls upon the House of Humblethwaite. Sir Harry Hotspur's son dies at 21 years of age. There is no other male heir save a second cousin, a scapegrace seemingly beyond redemption.

Wives and Daughters

Set in English society before the 1832 Reform Bill, Wives and Daughters centers on the story of youthful Molly Gibson, brought up from childhood by her father. When he remarries, a new stepsister enters Molly's quiet life, the loveable, but worldly and troubling, Cynthia. The narrative traces the development of the two girls into womanhood within the gossiping and watchful society of Hollingford.

Cranford

Elizabeth Gaskell's comic portrait of early Victorian life in a country town describes with poignant wit the uneventful lives of its lady-like inhabitants, offering an ironic commentary on the separate spheres and diverse experiences of men and women. As the external world necessarily impinges even on Cranford, the unlikely juxtapositions of old and new brought about by the pace of change are also explored.

Our Mutual Friend

A mysterious boatman on the Thames, a drowned heir, a dustman and his wife, and a host of other Dickens characters populate this novel of relationships between the classes, money, greed, and love. The 58 characters are presented with remarkable clarity by David Timson.

Daniel Deronda

Meeting by chance at a gambling hall in Europe, the separate lives of Daniel Deronda and Gwendolen Harleth are immediately intertwined. Daniel, an Englishman of uncertain parentage, becomes Gwendolyn's redeemer as she finds herself drawn to his spiritual and altruistic nature after a loveless marriage. But Daniel's path was already set when he rescued a young Jewess from suicide.

Dombey and Son

Dombey and Son is vintage Dickens and explores the classic themes of betrayal, cruelty and deceit. Dombey's dysfunctional relationships are painted against a backdrop of social unrest in industrialized London, which is populated by a host of fascinating and memorable secondary characters. The complete and unabridged novel is brought spectacularly to life by veteran reader David Timson.

Shirley

Set in the industrialising England of the Napoleonic wars, a period of bad harvests, Luddite riots, and economic unrest, Shirley is the story of two contrasting heroines and the men they love. One is the shy Caroline Helstone, trapped in the oppressive atmosphere of a Yorkshire rectory, whose life represents the plight of single women in the 19th century. The other is the vivacious Shirley Keeldar, who inherits a local estate and whose wealth liberates her from convention.

Martin Chuzzlewit

The Chuzzlewits are a family divided by money and selfishness; even young Martin, the eponymous hero, is arrogant and self-centred. He offends his grandfather by falling in love with the latter’s ward, Mary, and sets out to make his own fortune in life, travelling as far as America - which produces from Dickens a savage satire on a new world tainted with the vices of the old. Martin’s nature slowly changes through his bitter experience of life and his enduring love for Mary.

Barnaby Rudge

In a case of mistaken identification, Barnaby Rudge, a pale half-wit with long red hair who dresses all in green and carries a large raven on his back, is arrested as the leader of a mob of anti-Catholic rioters. He is condemned to death on the gallows, but an upright locksmith named Gabriel Varden comes to his aid.

Little Dorrit

Little Dorrit is Amy, born in debtor’s prison, the youngest child of debtor William Dorrit, an inmate of the Marshalsea. The two are befriended by a man whose wife hires Little Dorrit as a seamstress. When William Dorrit inherits a fortune, he escapes the Marshalsea. The family, assuming a station befitting their wealth, travel to Italy.

North and South

Set in the context of Victorian social and medical debate, this novel is about rebellion, posing fundamental questions about the nature of social authority and obedience. This revised edition draws on recent theoretical work on gender and class.

Adam Bede

George Eliot's first full-length novel Adam Bede is a profound rendering of 19th century English pastoral life. This timeless story of seduction and betrayal follows the virtuous carpenter Adam Bede, whose world is soon disrupted when the all-too-beautiful Hetty betrays him for another villager. Her actions precipitate a turmoil of tragic events that shake the very foundations of their serene rural community.

The Moonstone

No, the "Moonstone" isn't a celestial relic, it's a gigantic yellow diamond of unearthly beauty that was given to Rachel Verinder as a present on her 18th birthday - and stolen that very night! Betteredge, one of the most beloved butlers in English literature, is the focus of this seminal detective novel, which examines how one family's life is turned upside-down by the theft. And find out why the answers to all of life's problems can be found in the pages of Robinson Crusoe.

The Old Curiosity Shop

Provoking an unprecedented outpouring of public grief when it was first published, it follows the story of Little Nell and her feckless grandfather. Forced to leave their magical shop of curiosities in London, they are pursued across the English countryside by the grotesquely evil dwarf Quilp. They escape - but at what cost?

Publisher's Summary

Who owns the Eustace Diamonds? Lizzie Eustace claims that Sir Florian Eustace, her late husband, gave them to her. But Mr Camperdown, the family solicitor, insists that they are an heirloom, to be passed down from generation to generation. Lizzie is both beautiful and clever, yet Mr Camperdown believes her to be a scheming liar. And Mr Camperdown is right! The battle for the diamonds rages until a robbery intervenes and they disappear. Or do they...?

The third novel in the Pallisers series, "The Eustace Diamonds" is the least overtly political, though some of the main characters from the series re-appear in the book in minor roles. It could certainly be read independently of the other books in the series.

Lizzie Eustace is in many respects a latter-day Becky Sharp. Though less ruthless and more self-deceiving than Thackeray's anti-heroine, she is shallow, beautiful, manipulative, and without redeeming qualities. After marrying the dying Sir Florian Eustace for his money, she embarks on an expensive career as a society widow, and the story revolves around her possession—and subsequent loss—of a diamond necklace which has been an heirloom in the Eustace family, and which she claims is her personal property.

Though real-life Lizzies are highly unpleasant people, the fictional version is highly entertaining, and after several hundred pages of gripping legal, criminal and shenanigans, it is hard not to feel sorry when the naughty Lady Eustace is finally delivered up to her fate. The reading, by Timothy West, is top-notch. If you are not familiar with Trollope's work, this is as good a place as any to start.

What a fantastic listen! Lizzie Eustace is a woman that you learn to hate and also to love. All the characters of this novel are well drawn and delightful.
We listened to this while driving across the country (Canada). It made the trip fly by!

I enjoyed the Eustace Diamonds immensely.A little more light hearted the some other of Trollope's works, and as such a highly entertaining companion over a period of grim weather.Timothy west is as always the perfect reader.

Timothy West's narration is so at one with the story that it sweeps the listener into another world. Brilliant story and beyond superb narration. Timothy reads with such passion. Listening to Trollope's stories has made me a lean, mean machine as I listen at the gym and sometimes end up staying for three hours rowing, cycling and running just so I can hear the next part of the story. I listen every day and these books are a huge chunk of my life. Bravo to Timothy West. He is totally magnificent. He has turned me into a Trollope tragic. I cannot write an objective review because I listen with gobsmacked love. A complete addict!

Trollope has so many wonderful narrators that I feel guilty singling this one out. Simon Vance has done a wonderful version of this same book.

But this is the one I listened to this time around. I have a great fondness for Timothy West for other performances he's given over the years; his deep and pleasing voice strikes just the right note of gossipy intimacy.

Lizzie Eustace, widow with a life interest in her husband's estate, gives out that one of the heirlooms of the estate - a fabulously expensive diamond necklace - was given to her as her own property by her late husband. This sets off a whirlwind of legal wrangling that comes to an abrupt end when the diamonds are stolen.

Did she steal them herself? It's not really a whodunnit: the reader always knows more than the police, and indeed more than any other single character. It's more of a how's-it-going-to-play-out story than a mystery (although there are enough dogged English detectives to satisfy any mystery fan), and how it plays out is with, in usual Trollope fashion, lots of ins and outs, advances and retreats, love and dislike, overconfidence and fear.

Trollope has the great gift of making his characters, and his narrative, seem lifted from real life with the most minimal shaping involved. Few of his characters, even Lizzie the Great Liar, are thoroughly bad; few, even Frank Greystock, the closest the book has to a real hero, are thoroughly good. Events unfold with a messiness that subverts the clean progression of narrative. And yet somehow by the end, the loose ends are tied up and poetic justice is dispensed.

One character in the story comes to a particularly sad end: although there's some ambiguity about it, she appears to fall prey to mental illness - not raving; histrionics are rare in the book - but in a subdued and thoroughly convincing monomania. I hope she returns in a later volume, restored to health, but I'm not going to hold my breath.

An enjoyable Trollope outing. Got me through one of the worst colds I've ever had. Good for bedtime unwinding.

The six Palliser books are wonderful. Timothy West is a superb narrator and brings the characters to life. Although it is very rewarding to listen to the series in sequence, I feel that each books is enjoyable on its own, without listening to them all. Highly recommended

Wonderful story, superb narration. Lady Eustace's first foxhunt is the funniest scene I've listened to on an audiobook. I laughed out loud (as I did every time West said "corsaire") and bookmarked it so I could play it many times. Truly entertaining!

Timothy West has such subtlety and humourous nuance flowing from his brain to his vocal chords that he could read a train timetable and I would probably be interested for ten minutes at least. It is wonderful to have a reader of such skill to present the various works of Trollope for the first time, for me at least. Now I see where Joanna gets it. An enthralling look at what people of a certain class were up to in England in the 1860's. Flawless reading, and nice and long.

11 of 11 people found this review helpful

Julie

Sydney, Australia

7/27/10

Overall

"Marvellous Trollope and Timothy West"

So entertaining and insightful, beautifully read. I do hope Timothy West records the rest of Anthony Trollope. These are my favourite audio books.

10 of 11 people found this review helpful

Christine

Coromandel Valley, Australia

12/5/11

Overall

"What a minx"

Lizzie Eustace has been brilliantly written by Trollope, and this is a twisting story that is quite difficult to predict. Loved this (read just as brilliantly as usual by Timothy West).

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

MrsCat

12/4/15

Overall

Performance

Story

"Fantastic!"

If you could sum up The Eustace Diamonds in three words, what would they be?

Can't be done.

What other book might you compare The Eustace Diamonds to, and why?

Vanity Fair, probably, because of the similarity between the ( anti) heroines and the entertainment value.

Have you listened to any of Timothy West’s other performances? How does this one compare?

No, I have not, but on the back of this one I will be looking out for other books he's read.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes, though I also wanted to savour it in small bites...

Any additional comments?

This really is a very enjoyable book and reading - Timothy West's lovely fruity voice and slight suggestion of ham are perfect for what is a cracking story.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

LilyRose

Surrey, United Kingdom

6/3/15

Overall

Performance

Story

"Wicked Lizzie Eustace!"

You can't help liking the central character in her schemes to keep a family heirloom and to find a husband, even though she causes all sorts of trouble with her selfishness and stubbornness. Highlights very strongly the 19th century need to marry for money (for men and women). Superbly read by Timothy West as usual. Very long, but thoroughly enjoyable. Warning: contains a bit of Victorian anti-semitism , so be aware if that would offend you.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Deborah

Bristol, United Kingdom

6/10/12

Overall

"Exciting!"

This was so enjoyable, so exciting that I couldn't wait to get back to it each day and was sad when it ended. So well-read, he really is the best in my book.

1 of 2 people found this review helpful

Traveller

1/23/15

Overall

Performance

Story

"If it doesn't grab you at first, persevere!"

What did you like most about The Eustace Diamonds?

Terrific story, brilliantly read by Timothy West, as all his Trollope novels are. A very great pleasure to listen to.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Lizzie [Lady] Eustace. A marvellous antihero, Timothy West plays her part wonderfully, intoning all her scheming, tantrums, and feminine wiles. We have all met Lizzie types in life, Trollope gets under her skin and presents her character in an alarmingly clear sighted and almost, at times, sympathetic way. In a way, she is a bit of a relief after so many near-perfect, patient and compliant females in a number of his tales (including Lucy Morris in this one).

Which character – as performed by Timothy West – was your favourite?

A cameo performance of the lawyer Mr 'Turtle' Dove is memorable, though it's a short appearance in the book, but so well done. His Mr Camperdown, another lawyer, is also spot-on. But Timothy West plays all the characters 'in character' whether male or female, he does them all justice.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Not that I can remember, but I recall laughing quite alot all the way through; there were some hilarious asides, mainly linked to Lizzie's antics and her dealings with Lord Fawn and later with Lord George. The description of Portray Castle in Scotland sounds very much like Culzean Castle, also on the Ayrshire coast, which today has a wondrous garden, though during 'Lizzie's tenure' it has gone to rack and ruin, more or less, since she cannot afford to staff it appropriately.

Any additional comments?

This book did not grab me at first and I struggled with it, for some reason, for a couple of 'go's at the first chapters over several weeks before getting stuck in -- glued to it, in fact. If you find it doesn't grab you at first, try again. It is well worth it. A good story; much too long, really. It would benefit from editing; Trollope repeats himself often and retreads already described scenarios for no obvious reason; some of the asides are weak and seem like pointless padding-out to meet a word-count. Nevertheless, I was sorry to finish it and played it all again soon after! I wondered if Trollope chose Eustace because it rhymes with 'useless'... They are the 'useless diamonds', when all is said and done, but enjoyable, all the same.

2 of 4 people found this review helpful

JH

UK

5/30/13

Overall

Performance

Story

"A Convoluted Tale"

A typical Trollope tale with lots of deception and twists and turns. Lizzie finally gets what she deserves!!! Timothy West gives it a wonderful gravity.

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

Catriona

10/3/16

Overall

Performance

Story

"Loved it!"

First class narration by Timothy West. I am really enjoying listening to the Pallister novels. I so much enjoyed The Eustace Diamonds and am now about to purchase Phileas Redux, the next in the series. Highly recommend.

0 of 0 people found this review helpful

Festival goer

6/15/16

Overall

Performance

Story

"Exactly the right modulation by Timothy West"

Long book but it doesn't flag or feel dated. The narration makes you take the book at a slower more enjoyable pace than reading it to yourself. Recommended to all Trollope fans

0 of 0 people found this review helpful

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